A Verdun city councillor who was elected with former mayor Denis Coderre’s political party in November is joining Montreal’s executive committee and will be an associate member responsible for culture and reconciliation.

Marie-Josée Parent, who is of Mi’kmaq and Acadian heritage, is the city councillor for Champlain–L’Île-des-Soeurs in the Verdun borough.

Parent is the first Indigenous woman elected to Montreal city council.